Ephesians 3:14-21 Prayer for Strength and Understanding
After revealing that the gospel message of salvation was available for both Jew and Gentile and that God chose the church to proclaim His truth, Paul recalls another reason he prays (the first given in chapter one), to emphasize the need for all churches and Christians to pray and seek God’s strength, love and understanding. He once again uses the word, ‘according’ (Greek word kata), in this case he says that according to the riches of His glory (certainly no end to this attribute of His) that God would provide power, comprehension and His abundant love so that we can be filled with all the fullness of God.
It is important to understand that God doesn’t just point us in the direction we need to go and then say, “hey see you on the other side!” God is with us every step of the way, every breath, every thought, all the time. He provides us the direction, discernment, understanding and all the resources and protection we need. We just need to keep our eyes on Him.
On the surface this prayer may appear to be a straightforward request for God to supply the needs of a church or provide strength for a believer. However, when he requests in his prayer that believers obtain the strength to comprehend what was given to them and have the knowledge of God’s love, Paul asks that we know the breadth and length and height and depth (or in some versions wide, long, high and deep) of these incredible blessings. Stop and think for a moment, four dimensions, know the unknowable and be filled with fullness? We all live in a three-dimensional world, those dimensions are typically identified as width, height and depth, so what is this fourth dimension? Paul in his prayer is asking that we Christians be given something not only beyond our human ability to understand but also power beyond the constraints of what we know to be reality. This is Paul’s way of saying we have a supernatural God and we should never limit our thinking or our prayers to only something we can understand. He would also remind us, “What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31, ESV)
14 For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, 15 from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, 16 that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, 19 and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. 20 Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, 21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
Christians can get distracted by being overly concerned regarding their posture in prayer. Here Paul refers to bowing to his knees when he prays and we see that throughout the Bible other postures are used (read Ezra 9:5-6; Psalm 95:1-6 and Daniel 6:10). We need to understand that the Bible does not teach that any particular prayer posture is required. We are allowed to stand, sit, lay down, kneel, walk, run, drive, etc. However if we are moved to kneel or fall to the floor in reverence we should, these are always special moments between us and God. Prayer and our posture during prayer should never become a ritual. We should never allow a tradition such as the need to kneel or bow in a worship service be more important than what we are doing. Remember Christianity is not a religion of rituals.
Paul recognizes and honors God the Father as the One who set into motion all things by saying He is the One who provides names (identification) for every family. Believers in heaven and on earth, through faith have been given a special identity as being followers of Christ, He made our eternal existence possible. We have been called to follow the One whose name is above all other names.
We have been strengthened by the power of the Holy Spirit that dwells within us. Paul made it clear in Ephesians 1:13-14 (see Chapter 5) that we were sealed by the Holy Spirit and that we also have immeasurable power through Him (Ephesians 1:17-19, see Chapter 6).
Paul once again uses his “reverse cascade” approach (see Chapter 3) and begins to build up a series of points. The foundation he begins with is power, so that Jesus can dwell in our hearts through faith. Knowing we have access to God’s power is essential for any Christian. If we try to exist in this world without God’s power we would not be able to do as He calls us to do. Much like a chain saw that certainly works better when it is properly fueled and fired up than it does when it is off, we too, when trying to ‘manually’ operate in this life will struggle needlessly.
Both words, ‘rooted’ and ‘grounded,’ in verse 17 imply similar concepts. Rooted means to render something firm, strengthened by roots. Grounded refers to something made stable by laying a foundation or by a strong base. Paul is saying we need to understand that everything we do is is to be done on the firm foundation of God’s love. A Christian should always reflect His love, it is imperative!
The word translated in verse 18 as ‘strength’ is the Greek word exischyō referring primarily to the ability to do something at full strength. God chose His Word to reveal to us things about Himself and about us. If we use only our own intellect, we will fall short in more than one way. We need God’s wisdom and understanding which He generously supplies. If we lack understanding He is able to provide fully what we need (Remember James 1:5).
Paul also wants us, “to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge,” it seems like either an impossibility or a contradiction to learn something that is unknowable. However with God nothing is impossible He will provide answers, even about things the world cannot understand or explain.
The Greek word translated as ‘filled’ in verse 19 implies being completely filled and in this prayer of Paul’s he is asking that we are completely filled with the fullness of God. Being completely filled with the fullness of God means we are completely filled with God. Before getting frustrated at that answer read it again. If a vessel is filled to the brim with something there is no room for anything else. If we are 100% filled with God there is no room for things of the world, things contrary to God, things that tempt us, things that want to do us harm, etc. Being filled with the fullness of God is a tremendous blessing. Later in this letter Paul will use the same term to state that we need to be filled with the Holy Spirit (see Ephesians 5:18).
Paul closes his prayer acknowledging God as being able to do far more than we ask or think. Paul acknowledges that God is greater than anything and certainly greater than anything we know. If we know that, then we can pray more effectively for things beyond our ability to understand. If we limit our prayer life to only things we know, we may miss out on some of the blessings God has in mind for us. If we think something is impossible and never ask because we, in our minds, can’t see that happening and as a result never ask, then we are guilty of limiting God and effectively reducing Him to our level.
Paul uses the word ‘according’ again except this time he uses it in the phrase, “according to the power at work within us,” which serves as another reminder that we have power available to us through the Holy Spirit (see verse 16). Paul points to the fact that God is able to do far more than we think is possible and now reminds us that the same Holy Spirit, the source of that power and strength, resides inside us!
Paul’s prayer concludes with an acknowledgement that all glory belongs to Christ Jesus forever, reminding us that everything we do should bring glory to God, after all that’s what life is all about and that will continue in heaven forever, throughout eternity. Due to our limited ability to think beyond the concept that “everything has a beginning and an end,” Paul wants us to realize that there is no end to our relationship with Christ.
In summary, Paul’s prayer began with the ‘foundation’ with power, followed by Christ dwelling in our hearts, the understanding of God’s love, the ability to comprehend that God’s strength and abilities transcend our understanding, followed by the fact that we should remain full of His fulness (leaving no room in our lives for anything else), all while bringing glory to God. This prayer emphasizes and strongly encourages Christians to not only tap into God’s abundance but also recognize that as Christians we should pray beyond what we think is possible. Paul in his letter to the church at Philippi said, “I can do all things through him who strengthens me.” (Philippians 4:13, ESV)
After reading how Paul prayed, we might consider changing the way we pray. Paul reminds us that God loves us beyond anything we can think or understand. God has also extended to us power beyond anything we can think or understand. Paul is giving us an invaluable insight, pray with power!
Verse 31 concludes the first half of the epistle. In three chapters Paul has given us a concise definition of what Christianity truly is and he will begin to give us instruction on how to live as a follower of Jesus, how to be a Christian. The word that is translated in this verse as ‘glory’ is the Greek word ‘doxa’, which, interestingly enough, refers to someone thinking about something and rendering an appropriate opinion. In the New Testament the word is usually combined with a number of attributes we associate with God such as power, honor, majestic and authority to provide a summary of God’s greatness (since listing them individually may take a whole lot more paper than what is available). Instead of placing the doxology at the end of his epistle Paul places it right here at the end of his definition of Christianity. He is telling us that being a Christian means that we belong to Him and that He will provide everything we need as He is more than able. Unto Him be the glory, now and forever!